When you read that the show you're going to watch has "menacing lucha libre wrestlers" and "trout-eating zombies," you might wonder "how are they going to work that into the show?" Well, the answer for The Middleman is that they're probably not going to. It's just going to be thrown into the story along with lines and lines of tongue-twisting dialogue and campiness enough to spare for several shows like it. The show does have its moments, and does go through enough bizarre situations to produce a few interesting ones, but it feels very much like what it claims to be: a TV show based on a comic book.
Yes, I said comic book, not graphic novel. Now before you jump to conclusions on my taste in literature, there's a reason I give it that label. This is the stuff that "outsiders" to the comic scene look at and say, "Yep, that sounds like the plot of a comic book." The Middleman never quite rises above its comic book geekiness. There are references to Magneto, everyone has dialogue that sounds like it would be better in a giant dialogue bubble, and repetition is the key to all humor here.
Some highlights, however, can be found for most viewers, not just the hardcore fans. There are some pretty funny lines for characters (when they catch their breath long enough to have some normal dialogue). Guest stars like Kevin Sorbo occasionally break up the monotony, and there is a progressing storyline to follow, so it is more than just bad guy fight after bad guy fight. Natalie Morales is a standout as the main character, Wendy. She's completely charming in her role as the sidekick to the Middleman. She also gives plenty of fan service with her various skimpy outfits during the show (hello obvious comic book cliché), but she wears everything with such self-deprecating humor that it's more adorable than it is over-sexualized.
In fact, no part of The Middleman goes above the "wink and nod" level. If any part of the show were about to seem like a serious moment, the old-fashioned Batman-style theme music brings everything back to the world of cartoony silliness. The weapons and technology used by the Middleman team are all similarly reminiscent of ridiculous early sci-fi toy rayguns and the like. The Middleman car even has a retro-style corded telephone handset. The show seems to go between low budget props (some even have obvious stock computer cables hanging out of them) and fairly high end robots and CG effects. If there's a running theme, it's humor, but if you're in it for the atmosphere, you'd better love the 1950's low tech vibe.
One very good thing this DVD set has going for it is a ton of extras. You've got your director's commentary, your deleted scenes, gag reel, and photo gallery. But you'll get little extras you wouldn't normally expect. There's a complete read-through of one of the episodes. It's not terribly exciting, but if you want to see the actors and writers work through an episode in its early stages, this is a pretty rare insight. There's also a complete feature on the Wilhelm Scream occurrences throughout the show. If you can embrace your geekiness enough to admit the last sentence got you interested, then you'll most likely be pleased by the rest of the long list of bonus features.
So while The Middleman may be a cult show, you have to ask yourself, "Am I in the cult?" It's silly, and rather mindless sci-fi with a retro twist. If you're looking for some sort of extension of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, this isn't it. But if you're looking at this DVD set because you're a fan, it should do its job nicely.
